The AST Welcomes Dr. Ronald Gill as New President
Thursday, May 11, 2017
Mount Laurel, NJ – May 11, 2017 – The American Society of Transplantation (AST) announced its recently elected 2017-2018 board members, including its new president, president-elect, and secretary, at the American Transplant Congress (ATC) in Chicago.
The AST inducted its new president, Ronald Gill, PhD, during its annual meeting on May 1, 2017.
Dr. Gill is Professor of Surgery and Immunology at the University of Colorado Denver and the Scientific Director of the Colorado Center for Transplantation Care, Research and Education. Dr. Gill’s research program is focused on both the immunobiology of autoimmune diabetes and tissue/organ transplantation.
His primary research interest is in pancreatic islet transplantation as a treatment for insulin-dependent diabetes. As such, projects related to islet transplantation cover a range of topics including mechanisms of immune-mediated graft rejection, autoimmune pathogenesis of islet injury, mechanisms of transplant tolerance induction, and the role of metabolic distress on islet transplant outcome. He also has strong interest in the mechanisms of immunity and tolerance to solid-organ transplants, especially in small animal models of cardiac allografting.
Dr. Gill has been actively involved with numerous committees since joining the AST in 2004. He was elected to the AST Board of Directors in 2013, serving as councilor-at-large for two years, secretary for two years, and president-elect for one year. He currently serves as co-chair of the American Transplant Congress and has chaired the Transplantation & Immunology Research Network and Basic Science Advisory Council.
“The opportunity to serve in various leadership roles within the AST has been incredibly rewarding for me both personally and professionally,” stated Dr. Gill. “I am looking forward to leading another productive year with the AST.”
Dr. Gill’s goals for his presidency include patient advocacy, membership engagement, and increased funding for transplant research.
Dianne McKay, MD was elected as president-elect. She will assume the AST presidency in June 2018. Dr. McKay is the Medical Director of the Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Program at the University of California San Diego Health.
Richard N. Formica, MD was elected as AST’s Secretary. He currently serves as the Director of Transplant Medicine at Yale University School of Medicine.
Three new councilors-at-large were also announced: Deborah B. Adey, MD, of the University of California – San Francisco, David P. Foley, MD, of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine & Public Health, and Marian G. Michaels, MD, of the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.